Why Your Home’s Value Matters
Homeowners often wonder what their property is worth since it can affect the amount of money they should get when they sell their home, or the amount they can expect to pay for their next one. It’s no wonder that many homeowners have turned to the Internet to try and find an estimate for their home’s value.
Using the real estate appraisal process to determine the fair market value of a property requires significant knowledge and expertise. Most websites that claim to provide a home’s value based on a few pieces of information just don’t have the resources to be as accurate as a professional appraiser, so understand that the estimates you receive from them might not be 100% reliable.
But that’s not to say that the results of these websites are useless. Indeed, some are better than others, so we’ve rounded up the top 10 websites that can give you a general idea of which direction your home might be headed.
How much is your house worth? Top 10 best online tools to help you estimate your home’s value:
You’ve worked hard to buy your perfect home, and now you’re thinking about selling it. The thought of selling your house and starting all over again might not be appealing, but it’s not a bad idea. Here’s why: Many property owners would rather sell their home when it’s worth a lot and buy once more when their dream home comes on the market. Selling is also a smart choice if you’re thinking about flipping your home. Flipping is actually a good business strategy, but you need to know your home’s worth in order to make a profit.
Zillow
Zillow is a website that tracks home values and compares them to the latest sales in your area. It compiles all of the data that’s available on your home and compares it to the homes that are for sale in your neighborhood.
Next, it analyzes the sales prices, the dates they were last sold, the hours they’re on the market, and the probable sold price. It then combines all of that data into a single information pack to tell you what your home is worth.
Although home value is its main focus, Zillow also offers reviews on homes in your neighborhood. It will give you the average price of homes in your area, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms they have, and other features Homeowners pay for Zillow each month, but you can also get your real estate information by going to their website.
Trulia
Trulia Estimate offers a very easy way to estimate your home’s value. All you need to do is enter your address into the tool and click on “Find Home Value.” You’ll be directed to the main Trulia page where you’ll find an estimate of your home, which is based on things like location, square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and the year your home was built. The tool will also provide you with the value of comparable homes in your neighborhood. Another great feature of the Trulia Estimate tool is that you can compare homes in your neighborhood to homes across the country.
Redfin
Redfin is a real estate brokerage with innovative ways of approaching every aspect of the real estate transaction. They combine data from neighborhoods, real estate trends, and local events to deliver one of the simplest and most sophisticated real estate search engines on the web.
When it comes to listing your home, Redfin uses a more “human” approach to determine how much your home should be sold for. Instead of using data and algos, Redfin uses a “Comparable Sales Search Tool,” to help you figure out how much you should list your home for based on comparable sales from the last 6 months in your neighborhood.
Another unique feature of Redfin’s is the 3D Walkthrough feature, where you can walk around your house after uploading some photos and create a virtual 3D walkthrough video of your house. The process is actually pretty simple; you take some photos of your house from inside and outside in a closet or a room, upload the photos with an approximate floor plan of your home and a Redfin agent can quickly create a virtual 3D walkthrough.
Realtor.com
Simply type in your address and the website will present you a detailed report to help you understand the benefits of selling your house now or later.
How much is my home really worth? How much equity do I have? What are the different options available to me? What are the tax benefits of selling my home now or later? Your answers to these questions are just a few clicks away!
Real Estate ABC
Before you place your house on the market, you’ll want to find out what it’s worth, so that you can set the right price. You have a lot of options for getting this information, including surveys, appraisals, and asking a real estate agent. But to get a rough estimate of your property’s market value, you’ll still want to check out some of these online tools.
Eppraisal.com
This is one of the most comprehensive home inspection websites. You can easily search for homes in your area, and even set up email alerts so that you get notified as soon as a new home comes on the market.
HomeGain.com
Let’s start this list with one of the most popular websites of all time. If you’re new to real estate, you’ve likely stumbled upon this website. It’s one of the most comprehensive real estate websites there is. You can visit HomeGain to search for your dream home or research properties around your area. Best of all, you can enter a home’s exact address and it will search the web to locate targeted listing information for that specific property.
Chase Mortgage Services
Home Price Estimate
Chase Mortgage Services offers a home price estimate tool that works pretty fast to give you a rough estimate of the value of your home. Type in your address or your zip code and the tool will scan the listing of properties in your neighborhood.
Once you have it in the system, you can use it as a powerful tool in your real estate search. You can use it to find nearby home sales or even to estimate the sales price of your own home.
Here’s a cool box-score add-on feature, as you can also use Chase Mortgage Services to compare your home value to nearby properties and get a better sense of the market in your area.
RE/MAX
The folks at RE/MAX have created one of the best free resources for homeowners who like to check the market value of their homes. The RE/MAX Estimator includes everything from a snapshot of the real estate market to full-on home evaluations.
The site’s tool for checking the value of your home is particularly cool. The program’s features include information about comparable properties in the area, neighborhood demographics, and a survey of your home’s features, interior, and exterior. Click here to use it.
ForSaleByOwner.com
The website listed online estimates are just for sellers who are planning to sell their houses without using a realtor. It also provides useful links to local sellers that might help you resolve your issues without having to pay realtors. The site also has links to real estate schools and industry-related discussions that you can use for your reference.
Tracking Your Home’s Value
Online real estate search and home valuation sites are a great way to track the value of your home. You can use these sites to see how your home value differs from other homes in your area and from the national average. One of the most popular sites lets you see the home value trends for your area, as well as for the entire state. If you live in a very hot real estate market, like Southern California, then it makes sense to go to the state level. Otherwise, you may want to focus on your local real estate market.
After you’ve pulled together the information from each of the sites you visited, you’ll have a great idea of the current value of your home. Then you can determine where you stand if your home were put on the market. You may be able to use the information to help you determine the best time to sell, negotiate with a home seller, or make plans to renovate the bathrooms.